Nvidia is offering discounts of 10%-20% to graphics card makers, with the goal of clearing out several million graphics processing units (GPUs) from inventory before the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2005, which ends April 30, according to sources at Taiwanese makers. The total GPU inventory to be liquidated by Nvidia has a value of about US$80 million, compared with an average of US$50 million worth of inventory the company had cleared out in previous fiscal years, said the sources.

Officials at Nvidia Taiwan declined to comment on the pricing, but stated that the supply-and-demand situation of its chips remains normal. Among one of the preferential packages Nvidia is offering till the end of this month, the GeForce FX5200 will be bundled with the GeForce FX5700LE for just US$87, an approximate 10% off their combined normal prices. While the sell-off is expected to help Nvidia consolidate its market share, the move will also help Taiwanese graphic card makers lower their production costs, which have recently been pushed up due to rising DRAM prices, said the sources.